


Reunited

by AnneLaurant



Series: Flowers and Oranges [2]
Category: Shaman King (Anime & Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Canon Compliant, Family, Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-21
Updated: 2020-06-21
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:21:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,584
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24833023
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnneLaurant/pseuds/AnneLaurant
Summary: Amidamaru observes that, truly: like father, like son. Asakura Hana also wakes up in the middle of the night - three past midnight, to be exact. He goes to his parents' room and watches them sleep, but why?Compliant with SK Main; non-compliant with SKF continuum.
Relationships: Asakura Yoh/Kyouyama Anna
Series: Flowers and Oranges [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1687336
Comments: 9
Kudos: 27





	Reunited

Amidamaru as a spirit didn't need sleep, per se, and often he watched over his sleeping comrades and charges through the night.

As a teen, Yoh would get up in the middle of the night, usually for a quick bathroom break. Somehow, his little boy inherited the habit. Hana was a child who had erratic sleeping patterns, though three hours past midnight, he woke up anyway, got up, and walked around the house. Sometimes, it was for a bathroom break. Sometimes, it was simply because he couldn't go back to sleep. And sometimes, there would be other reasons.

Reasons, like watching his parents sleep.

Amidamaru kept his lips shut as he observed the six-year-old boy open his eyes and make his way to his parents' room again, three hours past midnight. Silently, Hana tiptoed, then watched, and after a few minutes of silence, left for bed.

Now that Amidamaru thought of it, the habit started about a week ago. It had also been a week since Yoh and Anna returned from the Middle East.

When daylight came, things continued as if nothing happened. Hana continued his training with Tamao, helping out Ryu in the kitchen, and being shy around his birth parents. Hana gave his father a weak kick and ran for his life, and Yoh turned to Anna.

"Hana does quirky things all the time, doesn't he?" Yoh laughed. "Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night, then I see him peeking from the door! His glare is so intense that it's so difficult to pretend to be asleep!"

Anna nodded. "Really? He's like you that way, huh?"

"Yeah. He sure is."

"What do you think he was there for?"

Yoh hummed in thought. "...I dunno. I thought he was just checking if we were still there."

Anna stared at her husband, and as she sipped her tea, her brows furrowed. "...look at us. We're a mess. We know nothing about our son."

"He has a good kick, so that's something!"

"Yoh, be serious about this! You saw how he reacted when Tamao told him to sit next to me!"

"I'm sure he was just surprised!"

"Yoh, I've been in that state of distrust in my life too. I know disgust when I see it!"

"Anna! You just need to give him some time!"

"Why? Was six years not enough?!"

Ah, yes. While they were his parents, Yoh and Anna knew little of their son. They had no contact with the outside world, and thus did not know how their boy grew up. Tamao said as much as she knew about the boy, but what was spoken did not always equate to what would happen. There were photographs, but those did not mean they witnessed important events personally.

While Amidamaru wanted to play peacemaker, he knew he shouldn't overstep his boundaries. Only a little nudge should do. He decided to follow Hana to the boy's room.

"Hana-dono, that was not polite," Amidamaru gently scolded.

"Hm?"

"You shouldn't kick your father for little reason."

"Whatever!" Hana groaned. "Ain't polite to leave your kid, either."

"They did it for the sake of the world."

"Doesn't feel like nothing changed."

Amidamaru closed his eyes. He didn't come here for this. He had to urge the boy to connect with his parents.

"Amidamaru."

"Yes, Hana-dono?"

"Were you also following me last night?"

"Of course."

Hana's cheeks reddened and puffed. Ah, maybe Amidamaru shouldn't have said that.

"I have not spoken of the matter to Yoh-dono or Anna-dono."

"Lies!"

"I honestly and solemnly swear on my sword!"

"...really?"

"Of course."

Hana crawled towards the closet and Amidamaru followed inside.

"Hey!" the boy complained, "I didn't tell you to follow me!"

"I really did not tell such a thing to your parents."

Hana puffed his cheeks again, then hung his head low. "You dummy..."

Amidamaru smiled. He had been forgiven. If he could, he would've rustled the boy's messy hair.

"But, spare my curiosity, Hana-dono. Why do you feel the need to look at them when you wake up in the middle of the night?"

Hana gave him a glance, then hid his face again. "Well… it feels like a dream."

A dream?

"My parents… my real parents, they're home now. Tamao-mom says I should connect with them. But I don't know."

"What do you not know of?"

"I don't know if I want to."

Ah, of course. Similarly, the boy grew up knowing little of his birth parents. Tamao told him she was his mother, out of fear that the people around would question her immense concern for a child that was not hers in the first place. When she revealed the truth, Hana wasn't too willing to forgive her at first. She goaded him out with his favorite takoyaki, convinced him she would never leave him even if she was not his birth mother, and made amends with him - of course, because they already had a bond in the first place.

But how would someone without those bonds make amends? Yoh and Anna were strangers to their own child, and even if Hana was happy when they came back, they had no real bonds to speak of, other than blood ties. The boy did as they told, followed their rules, and accepted them as a part of the household…

"Hana-dono, do you accept them as your parents?"

Hana flinched at the question and looked up. "I… I guess so? That's the truth anyway. That's what everybody says."

"But how do you yourself feel?"

"...weird."

Why, of course. "Why do you think so? Could you tell me how you feel about them?"

"Err… when I saw them for the first time, there was this… _glitter-glitter_ … feeling, in my chest and my stomach. Then I remembered they weren’t even there all my life, and then, _bazam!_ I kicked… I kicked…"

Hana gulped. Oh, dear. Was he really struggling to say the word 'Father'?

"...I kicked D-Daddy."

"Mmm. You did."

"But now I don't know. I get the same _glitter-glitter_ feeling in my stomach when I see them. And my chest… _HHUUUP!_ "

Hana made a crumpling motion with his hands. Heavy?

"It feels like this. Except bigger. And less… less strength."

Something like being choked?

"But I can't find nothing to say or do."

Hana hung his head again. A sigh escaped him, and Amidamaru almost wanted to spill the beans. Besides, Hana was less likely to take anyone's advice and hated having his puzzles and schoolwork answered for him, until he claimed to have given up. But, the warrior had to stay strong, and he would only allow himself to give a hint.

"Hana-dono, are you giving up?"

"Uh, no...?"

"In that case, have you tried to think that your parents would want to connect with you too?"

Hana squeaked. "I-I…! Well, that'd be nice, wouldn't it?!"

"Of course." Amidamaru smiled.

As Hana opened his mouth to speak, his stomach growled. Tamao called for lunch, and Hana turned to Amidamaru with a pout. "...I'll try…"

"Try to what?" Amidamaru asked.

"Try to do something, dummy!"

Amidamaru just didn't expect that his charge would try something like stiffly glaring at his parents in the eye. Hana never looked this determined or pumped up, but to his birth parents who barely understood him, it must've been a real surprise.

(Yoh said it wasn't, because he was used to being treated as an enemy by most of his friends upon their first meeting, including Anna herself.)

They were taking it slow, Amidamaru supposed, but any progress was good progress. He thought the matter would solve itself soon and resigned to simply watch.

And then, one night, he watched Hana wake up, and tiptoe towards his parents' room once more. Hana looked towards him, surprising the warrior.

"Hana-dono, I don't mean to…"

But Hana didn't seem upset. In fact, there was a gleam of a question in his eyes.

_Is this all right?_

Amidamaru smiled and nodded. "It's all right," he whispered and drifted away, giving his little charge some space.

The boy looked into his parents' room, and happened upon the couple having woken up. Hana almost ran away, but he changed his mind. He steadied and turned to his parents as bravely as he could.

"Hey, Hana! What is it?" asked Yoh.

Hana took a deep breath and shook his head.

"Hana, it's all right. We won't go anywhere else. We'll just be here."

He fidgeted by the door.

"Err, I guess you can't sleep?"

He nodded.

Then, in a gentle voice, the gentlest voice Amidamaru ever heard out of Anna, she said, "Well, come here, Hana."

The boy took a very, very deep breath.

The seconds ticked by, but Amidamaru was very sure that his charge had made up his mind. With a puff of his cheeks, Hana ran into the room.

Amidamaru left the family to their private, intimate moment. He settled by the courtyard and took in the sound and tempo of nature. As the leaves fell and the breeze blew, he let his imagination wander. In his mind, he saw Hana crying himself to sleep. Anna would give her son a gentle kiss to the head, and Yoh would embrace his family close to him.

Whether or not that actually happened, Amidamaru was content to see the results tomorrow and over the next few days. What truly mattered was now, the hearts of parents and child were reconnected.

Finally, the Asakura family was truly reunited.


End file.
